Veils are worn in various numbers and combinations by Gorean free women, this tending to vary by preference and caste. Many low-class Gorean women own only a single veil which must do for all purposes. The veil, it might be noted, is not legally imperative for a free woman; it is rather a matter of modesty and custom. Some low-class, uncompanioned, free girls do not wear veils. Similarly certain bold free women neglect the veil. Neglect of the veil is not a crime in Gorean cities, though in some it is deemed a brazen and scandalous omission.' Slave Girl of Gor --pg. 107

No, it's not a crime, but it's a very high risk you take walking into your city without a veil on. I suppose in smaller villages it may not be quite as scandalous as it would be in a larger city. But even free women who want to remain free, would (by what custom and society and modesty dictate) most likely want to cover their lips and beauty with a veil(s). It would be shocking to see a woman without a veil. How brazen. How scandalous! Is she crazy? Is she wanting to get collared? You see very little of that shock of her being unveiled in SL Gor because, in my experience, a majority of women who walk around unveiled aren't willing to accept that it's dangerous, that men may act on it, and that women may react to it. I once mocked a woman for being without a veil (this was only a few months ago), and not only did she do the "I'm Northern. We don't wear a veil even in your Southern city and you can't make me or I'll leave and tell my family not to come here" thing, but people in the group chat got upset that I was "being mean to a visitor".

It's not that they don't wear a veil, Torolf. It's that they don't even acknowledge that there's anything wrong with not wearing a veil.

Eta, from behind me, pinned the first of five veils about my face. It was light, and shimmering, of white silk, almost transparent. Then, one after the other, she added the freedom veil, or veil of the citizeness, the pride veil, the house veil, and street veil. Each of these is heavier and more opaque than the one which lies within. The street veil, worn publicly, is extremely bulky, quite heavy and completely opaque; not even the lineaments of the nose and cheeks are discernible when it is worn; the house veil is worn indoors when there are those present who are not of the household, as in conversing with or entertaining associates of one’s companion. Veils are worn in various numbers and combinations by Gorean free women, this tending to vary by preference and caste. Many low-class Gorean women own only a single veil which must do for all purposes. Not all high-caste women wear a large number of veils. A free woman, publicly, will commonly wear one or two veils; a frequent combination is the light veil, or last veil, and the house or street veil. Rich, vain women of high caste may wear ostentatiously as many as nine or ten veils. In certain cities, in connection with the free companionship, the betrothed or pledged beauty may wear eight veils, several of which are ritualistically removed during various phases of the ceremony of companionship; the final veils, and robes, of course, are removed in private by the male who, following their removal, arms interlocked with the girl, drinks with her the wine of the companionship, after which he completes the ceremony. This sort of thing, however, varies considerably from city to city. In some cities the girl is unveiled, though not disrobed, of course, during the public ceremony. The friends of the male may then express their pleasure and joy in her beauty, and their celebration of the good fortune of their friend. The veil, it might be noted, is not legally imperative for a free woman; it is rather a matter of modesty and custom. Some low-class, uncompanioned, free girls do not wear veils. Similarly certain bold free women neglect the veil. Neglect of the veil is not a crime in Gorean cities, though in some it is deemed a brazen and scandalous omission. Slave girls may or may not be veiled, this depending on the will of their master. Most slave girls are not permitted to veil themselves. Indeed, not only are they refused the dignity of the veil, but commonly they are placed in brief, exciting slave livery and may not even bind their hair. Such girls, healthy and vital, their hair unbound, their considerable charms well revealed by the brevity of their costume, are thought by men to constitute one of the more pleasurable aspects of the scenery of a city. Are the slaves of Ar, for example, more beautiful than those of, say, Ko-ro-ba, or Tharna? Men, the beasts, heatedly discuss such questions. In some cities, and among some groups and tribes, it might be mentioned, though this is not common, veils may be for most practical purposes unknown, even among free women. The cities of Gor are numerous and pluralistic. Each has its own history, customs and traditions. On the whole, however, Gorean culture prescribes the veil for free women. Eta fastened the fourth of five veils upon me, the house veil. Though Eta wore only the shameful, scandalous Ta-Teera, she pinned the veils expertly. She, now only a delicious, half-naked slave girl, had once been free. She did her work beautifully.I felt the street veil fastened upon me. I was veiled as might have been a rich Gorean free woman of high caste, perhaps bound for the song dramas of En’Kara.

Slave Girl of Gor; p. 107-108

I'm totes cool with FW not wearing a veil if that's a conscious choice they made for their character, with the understanding that they will be seen as "scandalous" and/or "a slut" and/or "begging for a collar" by most other characters in a city setting. Most know Torvoldsland and Port Kar break from the norm, and thusly- such an omission there wouldn't be as big a deal- but yeah- it'd be nice if folks in a city setting were aware of how important the veils were to the average free woman, and the significance of such so they could react somewhat appropriately to the setting and didn't get all huffy and butthurt OOC when called on it IC.

"...to take truth for granted is not to know it. Truth not won is not possessed. We are not entitled to truths for which we have not fought." --- (Marauders of Gor, p.7)http://clockworkkitteh.blogspot.com/

And what about FW wearing a corset? Does a FW need to display her curves?

I don't think she would because that would be against the very concept of wearing a veil and hiding her beauty. A corset would outline her figure and showcase her body to men. It's my understanding that robes of concealment hid the woman's figure. I see a lot of those form fitting, curve hugging dresses that taper in around the legs too. I'm not a fan of those for Gorean FW rp.

In the full Gorean Robes of Concealment little of the free woman can be seen saving her eyes, over the veiling, and beneath the hood. In the Tahari region the veiling is often so complete that even the eyes cannot be seen, but must be surmised, as peering outward though a dark gauze. Certainly the body is to be muchly concealed. And the robes, with their length, and the nature of the sleeves, and the gloving, are designed to conceal as well as possible the speculative treasures which might be hidden within them. To the Gorean the sight of a free woman's wrist, or ankle, can be powerfully stimulatory. Kur of Gor Book 28 Pages 333 - 334

The human body, on Gor, is not regarded as shameful. Even Gorean women of high caste, who are commonly robed and veiled in public, do not regard bodies as shameful. That would be absurd for a Gorean. They do, however, usually, regard their bodies as special and provocative, and exquisitely private, and certainly not for public viewing. The Gorean free woman then does not think of her body as something to be hidden for reasons of shame but as something to be hidden for reasons of propriety. As is well known the usual Gorean free woman is more concerned with the concealment of her facial features than her body. Her face is much more revealing of herself than her body.Swordsmen of Gor Book 29 Page 335

It's not a murky or difficult concept, really- the typical free woman concealed as much of her body and face as she could, for a variety of reason, privacy, security, modesty, custom. Wearing tight or form-fitting clothing that reveals the curves of a female body flies against that, obviously, as do the sheer veils (which were considered even more provocative than no veil at all, and suitable for slaves), uncovered hair, and bare skin of any sort. The higher the caste/station in life, the more carefully and ostentatiously the woman would cover herself with rich, fine fabrics that hid her beauty from the eyes of anyone she didn't choose to let see, as well as protected her from inciting someone to plot to enslave her.

The problem is- in most SL Gor sims, the woman wandering around unveiled, in tight/revealing dresses (with mesh tits, no less! lol) are generally -trying- to attract attention, and often want to be enslaved. The funny thing is, by the standards set in the books, the more beautiful a woman is, and the more she is aware of that beauty, the more she'd generally try to keep it concealed, so it's almost as if these women would be considered ugly or unattractive and are desperately trying to make up for it by blatantly putting what they have on vulgar display. LOL

But that's just one of the great imbalances of trying to roleplay in a setting most don't understand.

"...to take truth for granted is not to know it. Truth not won is not possessed. We are not entitled to truths for which we have not fought." --- (Marauders of Gor, p.7)http://clockworkkitteh.blogspot.com/